fromthedentist

Spring/Summer 2010

We love to meet your friends and family! Thank you for your referrals!

Whether for business or pleasure, an overnight or extended stay, many people travel during the spring and summer. In one study, 91% of the participants said they continued with their home oral care routine while they were traveling. That’s excellent news. Brushing, flossing and rinsing are still the best strategy to prevent oral disease and decay.

Here are some travel suggestions to keep your smile in tip top shape while away from home.

n Pack extra oral hygiene accessories-they may not be replaceable;n Store your toothbrush in a container that has air holes;n Keep oral hygiene tools dry and clean;n Floss and use mouthwash if you forget your toothbrush …and can’t buy

a new one;n If flying with carry-on luggage, 3 ounces or smaller sized toothpaste and

mouthwash are allowable; n Do not share toothbrushes. Oral bacteria can be passed from person to person;n Use bottled water to brush teeth when you are abroad;n If you run out of toothpaste, brush with water.

Produced to improve your dental health and awareness “We Care About Your Smile”

Open up the windows and breathe! It’s time to throw off the weight of winter. And, what a winter it was … I will not miss seeing the white stuff for quite some time! Spring has arrived, with summer following right behind. It is time to put some new life into your step, get ready for outdoor activities, social gatherings, family reunions, barbeques, and those long awaited summer vacations.

My plans are already set for a trip to Chicago in June to attend the House of Delegates meeting for the New York State Dental Association. We assess the challenges, innovations and accomplishments of the Association and plan its direction and mission for the upcoming year. You the patient are number one in our plans to make dentistry the best it can be.

This summer Lois and I are once again renting a house on Cape Cod. We look forward to sharing the week with our daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter. What fun it will be to relax at the beach, watch my granddaughter

Dentally SpeakingDentally Speaking......... with Dr. Alan L. Mazer .........

make sandcastles, collect shells and discover the wonderful underwater activities around the sand bars, enjoy ice cream on a hot day, bike the Cape Cod bike trail, and drift in a canoe on the lake. Ah, the pleasures of summer!

With the slower pace of summer and with many of you traveling and pursuing summer pastimes, we can be more available to accommodate your family’s schedule. This is a great time to book appointments you’ve been feeling too pressured to keep. Has it been more than six months since you’ve seen us? Could your smile use brightening? Do you have a bridge or other restoration that’s getting worn or loose? Do you or your child need mouth guards for summer sports? Call us to schedule that appointment you have been putting off. Our doors are open to you now and all summer long.

Yours in good dental health,

Dr. Alan L. Mazer

Traveling This Spring Or Summer? You can take your good habits with you!

Have a great trip, and remember … a healthy smile is always in style!

What you choose to place a high value on says quite a bit about you. For example, if you treasure your health and well-being and that of your family, that tells the world that quality of life really matters to you. An improved quality of life brings each of us a greater sense of self-confi dence and mastery of our environment. And nothing says self-confi dence and mastery

like a healthy and beautiful smile. Here are some smile fl aws we’re often asked about. Many of the

popular solutions we’ve suggested take only one or two visits without surgery and without anesthetic.

Chipped or cracked teeth? Tooth-like materials can be bonded to your enamel so no one will ever notice.

Discolored teeth? Supervised professional whitening can brighten your teeth. Versatile bonding and veneers can camoufl age and whiten.

Gaps in your teeth? Bonding or porcelain veneers can reduce unwanted spaces without braces.

Crooked, crowded, or protruding teeth? Teeth with very wide gaps? Orthodontics can bring them back in line – in no time.

Worn-down teeth and ageing restorations? Beautiful natural-looking inlays and onlays, crowns, bonding, and

veneers can whiten, re-contour, strengthen, and restore symmetry to your smiling face!

Some things are too precious not to value. Your beautiful smile is proof that you have chosen to become the best that you can be!

What you choose to place a high value on says quite a bit about you. For example, if you treasure your health and well-

What’s Precious To You?

Strategies From H To OYou can do it!

It’s tough to judge your impact on the environment. Take global warming. In one study, participants ranked an eight-minute shower “low” on a list of activities that generate greenhouse gases. The reality? Heating shower water produces more CO2 than a new compact car or a major appliance run for the same time!

A timer on your shower would help – and save water too! Here are some more conservation tips for you:

Turn the tap off while brushing your teeth.

Chill water in the fridge instead of running the tap.

Collect rainwater for your garden.

Wash your car with a sponge and bucket instead of a hose.

Our practice is committed to reduce, re-use, and recycle.

Something To Chew OnThe real skinny

Eating low-cal fruits can help lower your calorie intake, reduce your risk of some chronic diseases like stroke, heart disease, and diabetes, and may protect against certain cancers, including oral cancer.

Besides providing vital nutrients, each fruit has its own unique qualities. Scientists believe that grapefruit, for example, contains a substance that’s a natural fat-fi ghter. And no wonder the pear is so popular: this low-cal member of the rose family is a good source of fi ber, vitamins B2, C, and E, copper, and potassium!

Here are fi ve fruit-friendly tips...Add fruit to hot or cold cereal.

Top frozen yogurt with fresh fruit or compote.

Keep fruit visible – you’ll eat more of it.

Add fruit to salads and main-course meals.

Request a complimentary whole-fruit program at your place of work.

Tell the world... every day!

ML1

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Secure & VersatileSmile with dental implants

Nobody wants to lose teeth, but let’s face it – it can happen to anyone. Maybe even you? Thanks to dental implants though, you can avoid further damage that would otherwise add insult to injury, like the inevitable shifting and tilting of surrounding teeth and the loss of bone in the jaw that can create a sunken prematurely aged appearance.

as if safeguarding your oral health and appearance weren’t astonishing enough…

ask us about astounding, amazing, adaptable implants!

Implants require only normal brushing and flossing – no special home-care routines.

There is no need to remove healthy enamel from surrounding teeth to accommodate implants.

There is no metal visible above your gumline.

Implants can be used for a single tooth replacement or as part of a major makeover.

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Before

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What Do You Expect?Get the most out of life – and keep it!

You have so much to look forward to. An environment to save, career and fi tness challenges to meet, and the pleasure of mentoring people you care about personally and professionally. Still, you might be surprised by some of the things that can slow you down and take the joy away – like letting a little bit of gum disease develop into a serious problem. Gums? Serious? Defi nitely.

About The Mouth-Body Link – Science has linked gum disease with these disorders, among others: cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, cancers, diabetes, and arthritis.

About Progressive Discomfort – Although it begins with no symptoms, what’s virtually inevitable is bad breath, swollen tender gums, and gums that bleed when you brush or fl oss ... eventually progressing to gums that pull away from the teeth, exposed roots, and loose or drifting teeth… And well, you can guess how comfy that is!

About Appearance – Swollen red gums and exposed tooth roots aren’t appealing, plus bone loss due to gum disease can alter your bite, change the fi t of restorations, and make you look older than you are.

Please don’t postpone your regular visits. We can help you to prevent, arrest, and sometimes reverse gum disease. We can also show you how to brush and fl oss more effectively, including under the gumline and beneath your restorations, to remove the bacterial fi lm that is gum disease’s root cause.

…And you can look forward to living your life to the fullest!

Information included is not dental or medical advice. For your specific information be sure to consult our office. If you do not wish to receive this newsletter, please contact us directly.

Contents may not be reproduced without permission from the publisher. © PATIENT NEWS PUBLISHING (800) 667-0268

27933-52173 ML10-1 Printed with vegetable-based ink.

officeinformation

When it comes to treating your teeth and gums, there’s a bewildering array of choices and techniques. To help you understand some of the dental jargon, review the terminology in this article and become an educated patient.

Restoration: Dental lingo for any material or device that replaces lost tooth structure and restores function. This includes fillings, crowns, bridges, dentures etc.

Filling: A filling is a restoration that repairs part of a tooth. This includes amalgams, composites, inlays, onlays, gold foil and temporary fillings.

Alan L. Mazer, DMD, FACD, FICD140 Terryville RoadPort Jefferson Station, NY 11776-1330

Office HoursMonday 9:00 am – 6:00 pmTuesday 2:00 pm – 9:00 pmThursday 9:00 am – 5:00 pmFriday 9:00 am – 12:00 pmSaturday 8:00 am – 2:00 pm **Alternate Saturdays

Contact InformationOffice (631) 473-0666Fax (631) 473-0679Email dralanmazer@gmail.comWeb site www.dralanmazer.com

Office StaffEsta, Debbie ...............Dental HygienistsBeth ..................Scheduling CoordinatorPat, Veronica .............. Dental AssistantsLois .................... Practice Administrator

Dental Dictionary: The ABCs of Restoring TeethCrown: A restoration that restores the

part of the tooth above the gum line (the tooth crown).

Bridge: A restoration that replaces one or more teeth. Bridges cannot be removed.

Appliance: Dental office talk for restorations you can remove.

Denture: An appliance that replaces teeth. There are “full dentures” which replace all the upper or lower teeth, and “partial dentures” that replace one or more teeth.

Cavity: You might think it means decay. In fact it refers to what is left after

the decay is removed. Basically, it’s the hole. Removing decay and enlarging the cavity are part of preparing a tooth for a filling.

Impression: Dentists take an impression to create a plaster or dental stone model of a tooth or part of your jaw. The model can be used to make bridges, dentures, inlays, onlays and study models used for treatment diagnosis.

Dentists use all kinds of terms when they are trying to explain a procedure. If you hear one you don’t understand, don’t be afraid to ask us for an explanation.

Working Together To Ease Dental Anxiety

The American Dental Association estimates that over thirty million Americans suffer from dental anxiety. These patients continually cancel appointments, don’t come in for checkups, and delay necessary treatment until they have a serious problem.

Uneasiness and anxiety can hold anyone back. But, don’t let these feelings keep you from benefiting from preventive, restorative or cosmetic dentistry.

Here are a few tips to help make your visit to our office worry-free: Share your fears with us; keep appointments (delaying may complicate treatment); avoid caffeine and sugar before visits; ask for headphones and relaxing music; interrupt us if you need a break; ask questions (knowledge is power!).

We will do our best to keep you anxiety free by: consulting with you to develop your best treatment strategy; providing you with distractions; using technology to minimize discomfort; offering analgesics so that you can have more treatments in one visit; providing non-surgical treatments when indicated; and always being there with a helping hand. That’s what we’re here for!

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Practice Makes Perfect

Most people consider flossing a chore. In fact,

66% of adults do not floss despite knowing it’s the

best way to remove plaque between their teeth. Think

about it this way ... not flossing is like having a shower and

leaving 30% of your body unwashed. So, follow these easy directions and start flossing today! Your teeth will thank you.

Wind 18 inches of floss around the middle fingers of each hand, leaving about five inches in between. Pinch the floss between your thumbs and index fingers and leave about one inch to work with. Gently guide the floss down between the teeth, pull it into a C shape around the sides of a tooth, and slide it under the gumline. Clean the surface of the tooth by using an up-and-down motion. Repeat the process on all teeth. Wind the floss to a fresh section for each tooth. If you encounter difficulties, please let us know. We’re here to help.